Brooklyn Surfs Giving-by-SMS Trend; Mosio Launches Mobile Donations Initiative

Increased potential for libraries to gain support via new technology

Norman Oder -- Library Journal, 03/23/2010

• Brooklyn asking for $10 via text
• Uses mGive, which raised $40M for Haiti
• Mosio aims to link libraries and firms that can help

The recent earthquake in Haiti proved that the time had come for donations via text message, and libraries now are embracing that new fundraising technology.

The Brooklyn Public Library is seeking $10 donations from supporters willing to text BOOKS to 50555. It’s part of the Support Our Shelves (SOS) campaign to raise $500,000 in three months, aiming to blunt the expected impact of budget cuts. 

“Since we're the first New York library system to try texting as a means of fundraising, we're excited to act as the test subject, and have this form of donation enhance our already successful SOS campaign,” spokeswoman Stefanie Arck told LJ. As of today, the library has raised $140,000 via multiple avenues (BPL did not specify the percentage coming from SMS). 

BPL uses mGive, a service that helped raise nearly $40 million for Haiti disaster relief.

From Text a Librarian to mobile donations
Meanwhile, Mosio’s Text a Librarian, a popular source of text messaging solutions for libraries, has launched a middleman service, Mobile Donations Initiative, aimed specifically at libraries.

“By design, the initiative has always been to use our experience and relationships in the wireless industry to do the research and legwork for libraries to make it easy for those who are interested in this opportunity,” Mosio spokesman Jamieson Chandler told LJ.

“Throughout our conversations, we have identified a few mobile donation companies that we will recommend choosing,” he said, “based on their willingness to play an active, supportive role in helping libraries, that have unique ties to the library industry and that have methods of raising more funds beyond the typical $5-$10 SMS donations that serve to increase the success of a library’s mobile fundraising campaign based on tools they currently use–online giving widgets, Facebook/Twitter integration, iPhone applications, etc.”

Chandler noted that  Mosio/Text a Librarian does not stand to profit financially from the initiative but wants to help libraries make use of a new opportunity.